Q & A Tuesday!

Hi, everyone! I've been getting a lot of e-mails over at gmd.puangco@winawonders.com lately and I thought I'd share a couple of them with you--I"ll be doing this every Tuesday so don't hesitate to send me an e-mail. I've decided to post up the answers here in case other people have the same question. :) Also, if you don't want your name mentioned, please let me know!

Don't forget to leave the city you belong to (if you're in Metro Manila, I may just send you something) and your blog/website (if you have one).

*names have been changed per request of person

Q1 from Anna Banana*, Pasig City: Hi, Ms. Wina. Question lang po--sorry if it's a little personal pero are you rich? Your website looks nice po kasi and I'm trying to make my own blog pero it's difficult kasi wala po ako money. Thanks. And sorry po ulit.

A: No, I'm not rich. My parents are pretty well-off; they've made names for themselves but I myself am not rich. At the moment (and usually) I have like 2,000 bucks to my name, total. Most of my money has been hard-earned by selling vintage clothing and the bit I get from my parents goes into survival. 

But I suppose what you're asking is do you really need money to make your blog beautiful? Kung wala kang pera wala ka na bang magagawa? My answer to that is hell no. See, where money ends, begins the need for street smarts. Don't get me wrong--I'm not saying it'll be easy; mas madali talaga pag may pera kasi hindi ka tatanggihan pero kung gusto mo talaga, makakahanap ka ng paraan. 

Here are a couple of tips for fashion blogging on a budget:

Help Yourself. The thing about blogging is that it's something very independent--the decision to blog is made alone so you should also learn how to get things done alone. If you don't have anyone to help you take outfit photos, then find a way to get it done; they have tripods at CD-R King for P200, for example. 

Perfect your writing. Write in a language you're comfortable in; there's Google translate for Tagalog, but none for badly written English. If you're comfortable, your personality will shine through and that's what's will attract more readers to your site. 

Save Up & Invest. If you don't have a camera at the moment, use your camera phone in the meantime. I say "in the meantime" because frankly, if your blog is going to be one about Personal Style, you will need outfit photos. :) You can go and check out Sulit.com.ph for second hand cameras and things--you don't have to splurge on a super bongga model, just one that can take good photos. 

Take advantage of the freedom of the internet! Advertise yourself through Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest & all the other free social networking sites. Also, Blogger, Word Press & Tumblr all offer free domains. They also have free themes that you can play around with to make your site look beautiful.

Ask Your Friends For Help. There are some things we can't do alone. The header for this site, for example, was made for me by my soulmate/graphic designer Trizha Ko and if I'd never asked, I would never have known she would agree and it'd have never gotten done. Ask everyone who you know can do something special--maybe a friend of yours is really good at CSS and can help you fix your site, etc. 

Don't Be Shy. Interact online--which, since you sent me this, you already seem to be doing--and don't be afraid of asking questions if you don't know what to do. If you want more clothing to feature, then send proposals to stores, join giveaways and talk to people respectfully but professionally and always pull through with what you say. Furthermore, you might want to join blogging communities like the Independent Fashion Bloggers or Top Blogs.ph. This'll give you the opportunity to network and meet a lot of great people who could help you out and give you feedback! :)

I hope this was helpful! In the end, if you want something bad enough I think you'll find a way to get it done. Goodluck with everything! :D

Q2 from Jenny Madamba, Paranaque City: Ms. Wina, question--who takes your photos?

A: I do. :) I use a tripod.

Q3 from Anonymous (via comment post): Do you have a lot of connections in the fashion industry?

A: Nope. I don't. Everyone I know in the fashion industry are people I've met online through this blog or at events. The only people I know who are in fashion are a couple of designers who don't even know this blog exists. xD

Q5 from Krissy Toodles*, Cubao City: Hi, Ms. Wina. I noticed you have a lot of clothes. Do you go shopping all the time? How do you afford it? Do your parents pay for everything? I really want to blog but I've already repeated clothes and might go broke na if I keep buying every week.

A: I don't go shopping all the time. Although I must confess I shop quite frequently. And I afford it by saving up my allowance and selling vintage clothes--money doesn't grow on trees so you have to find your own way to make your own money. Also, my parents don't pay for the things I buy; there's an age limit for when you can ask your parents to pay for things and I've gone past that age, I think. Another thing I'd like to note about personal style blogging, by the way is that it isn't about showing off clothes--it's about mixing and matching pieces that you love and being yourself and feeling great. :) It's ridiculous that you feel ridiculous for repeating clothes--the clothes you repeat are the clothes you should be buying. :D It's incredibly wasteful to only wear everything once!

That's it for this week! I hope this was helpful! :D